History's King Antoine
Antoine Bourbon was the King of Navarre through his marriage to Queen Jeanne, from 1555 until his death. He was the first monarch of the House of Bourbon, of which he was head from 1537. He was the father of Henry IV of France. Life On 20 October 1548, Antoine married Queen Jeanne regnant of Navarre, daughter of Henry II of Navarre and his wife Margaret of Angoulême. By his marriage, he became King of Navarre, Count of Foix, of Bigorre, of Armagnac, of Périgord, and Viscount of Béarn. It was reported that Jeanne was much in love with him, but his subsequent actions show that he had little loyalty to her. The southern territory of the Kingdom of Navarre had been occupied by the Spanish since 1512, and Antoine tried to re-establish it. He was ready to sacrifice anything to his political interests. King Antoine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine_of_Navarre Religion Antoine appears not to have had real religious conviction and officially changed religions several times. His reconversion to Catholicism separated him from his wife and he threatened to repudiate her. He had an affair with Louise de La Béraudière de l'Isle Rouhet, "la belle Rouet," with whom he had a son, Charles III de Bourbon (1554–1610) who became archbishop of Rouen. Although his brother Louis was the head of the Protestant faction, Antoine spent most of his life fighting for the King of France. Catherine de' Medici, regent for her son Charles IX, named him lieutenant general of the kingdom in 1561. When his wife allowed the Huguenots to sack the chapel of Vendôme and the churches of the town in 1562, he threatened to send her to a convent. She took refuge in Béarn. King Antoine of Navarre http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine_of_Navarre Death Antoine was vain and unstable. He often disappointed his followers and was manipulated by his superiors and out-witted by his adversaries. He laid siege to Rouen and was mortally wounded on 13 November 1562. He died at Les Andely''s. Notes * His parents had 13 children, but only himself, Louis Condé, 3 other sons, and 4 daughters survived. * Only 2 of his 5 children survived to adulthood. His 3 brother that survived to adulthood never had children, and his other brother Louis Condé had 11 children, but only 4 survived. * His niece was a prospective bride for king James V of Scotland in 1536 when she was 20. * Had a bastard son named ''Charles III de Bourbon * King Antoine appeared not to have real religious conviction and officially changed religions several times. * His reconversion to Catholicism separated him from his wife and he threatened to repudiate her. * King Antoine was the father of the future King Henry IV of France, who ascended to the throne after the extinction of the House of Valois. * Antoine was vain and unstable. He often disappointed his followers and was manipulated by his superiors and out-witted by his adversaries. * One of his brother's supporters actually did killed the Duke of Guise * His wife, Queen Jeanne met Catherine de' Medici in France, where they arranged the marriage between their son, Prince Henry and Catherine's daughter, Princess Margaret. Family Tree References }} Category:Historical Category:Historical Figure Category:Reign Category:King